Over the weekend, Albanian police have made several arrests of those involved in transporting immigrants from Greece, through the country.
One vehicle was stopped on the Maliq-Lozhan road transporting three immigrants. A 35-year-old and 38-year-old both from Mjekes, Elbasan were arrested.
A second arrest was made of a 25-year-old from Tirana who was caught leaving Pogradec with four immigrants in a van.
Lastly, a 26-year-old from Elbasan was declared wanted after he refused to stop for the police. He abandoned the car in Pogradec and five illegal immigrants were found inside.
Albanian police have made a number of arrests in the last few months of individuals transporting third-country nationals though the country. The immigrants, mostly of Middle Eastern descent enter the country via the border with Greece and are then transported to Tirana before moving on to northern borders. From there, they aim to travel to EU Member States where they will seek asylum or residence of some kind.
It’s believed that the arrests are only the tip of the iceberg and that hundreds of immigrants are passing through the country every week.
